Shock-loader.



E. PITCHER.

SHOCK LOADER.

APPLlcAloN FILED JULY 31, 1913.

4. Patented. Apr. 20, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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,HE NURRS PETERS CO.. FHOTC-LITHO., WASHINGNY D. C,

E. PlTCHER.

SHOCK LOADER. APPLICATION man Jun 31,1913.

Patented. Apr. 20, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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Wir?? 655 es IML Nmevls PETERS C0 PHOT0-LITHO.. WASHINGTON, D. CA

E. PITCHER. SHGCI( LOADER. APPLICATION FILED JULY SII 1913.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

THE MORRIS PETERS COA. PHOTGLITHO., WASHINGmN, D, 1;,

Patented A131220, 19%.

SHOCK LOADER. APPLICATION mep luLY 3l. 1913.

Patented A101220, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

1HE MORRIS PETERS Co., PHOTOYLITHO.. WASHINGTUN. D. C.

ELMER PITCHER, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

SHOCK-LOADER.-

pecication of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 2G, 3191556 Application filed July 31, 1913. Serial No. 782,222.

To all wwm t concern: Y Be it known t at Emana PITCHER, a

lcitizen of the United States, residing at Minneapolis, in the county of Hennepin and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful 1Improvements in Shock- Loaders, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to shock loaders and has for its object to provide aA novel device of the class, which shall be simple and ehicient and will lift shocks of grain from the ground and deliver the same to anelevator, from which said shocks are conveyed to an elevated position where they may be dropped upon a hay rack or other conveyance suitable for receiving a load of shocks.

My present invention embodies some of the principles in my Patent No. 913,428 patented February 23, 1909, in which the framework of the machine is so mounted that the same is driven from behind, a transverse conveyer and elevator being provided. ln the said patent I employed two independent transverse conveyers, one for carrying the grain across the frame of the machine and the other for elevating the grain at the side of the machine, while in my present machine 1 employed a single conveyer vfor effecting the movement of grain across the frame of the machine and up the elevator.

My present invention involves a radical departure from old devices and a highly novel and beneficial organization of parts, which, while flexible to the desired degree and subject to the control of the operator for fixing the elevation thereof, will operate positively and certainly to engage the shocks, lift them bodily from the ground and transport them positively to and upon the transverse conveyer.

The full objects and advantages of my invention will appear in connection with the detailed description thereof and are particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, illustrating the application of my invention in one form,-Figure 1 is a side elevation of a shock loader machine embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional detail of the system of loader chains. Figs. 4 and 5 and 6 are details.

This machine comprises a primary frame consisting of the transverse axle 10 to which is rigidly secured a rearwardly projecting beam or tongue 11, said frame being supported by a bull wheel 12 and another wheel 13 on the axle 10 and a steering wheel 14rat the end of beam 11. Rigidly secured to the end of axle 10 outside of bull wheel 12 is a frame-piece 15, a similar frame-piece y16 being also rigidly secured to axle 10inside of wheel 13. The frame-pieces and 16 are connected together by means of crossbar 18, said crossbar being secured to tongue 11, and said frame-pieces 15 and 16 extending obliquely downward, forward of axle 10, where they are joined to horizontal extensions 17. The said horizontal extensions have secured thereto transverse side frame members 19 and 20, said frame members be- Ving extended into obliquely elevated side frame members 21 and 22. The side frame members 19, 20, 21 and 22 are held in suitable relative position by means of proper tie rods and a ioor 23, and have journaled therein the sprocket wheels over which run continuous transverse sprocket chains 24C and 25, said sprocket chains having secured thereto transverse conveyer slats 26, which conveyer slats, as clearly shown in F ig. 2, are secured to links of sprocket chains 24E and 25 so that the ends thereof do not overlie said sprocket chains. The .sprocket chains 2i and 25 at a point at the side of the horizontal transverse portion of floor or platform 23 pass under rollers 27, at which point the floor 23 extends obliquely upward and the chains 24 and 25 are caused to follow the inner surface of said platform by means of the rollers 27.

The forward portions of frame members 17 have rigidly secured thereto uprights 28, which uprights may be turned obliquely rearwardly toV some extent, if desired, and may be additionally supported by braces 29 lextending from upright 17. The forward portion of the framework formed of members 17 and the parts secured thereby are additionally supported and rigidlytied to the tongue 11 by means of strong guy rods 30 and 31 extending from a clasp 32 o-n the tongue 11. Guy rod extends to the top of a brace support 33 secured to the end of axle 10 outside of bull wheel 12, from which extends a supporting rod 34 to the end of oblique upright 28 and a pair of supporting rods 35 and 36 to the side members 21 and 22 of the elevator frame. Rod 31 eXtends to the top junction point of a pair of standards 37 and 33 secured to axlelO, from which eX- tends a supportingrod 39 Ato "the upper 'end of obliquely disposed upright 28 at theright hand side of the machine. A transverse ,strut or brace 116 extends between the ,upper ends of uprights 33 and 37, the whole strucv operatorwhof'wil'l stand uponplatform 11.

1f :d'esiredfthe end-'of :the'ltongue mayb'e 1additionally ,'weiglited, `thou gh ordinarily Ithis will'no't be necessary. "'Pivotally secured-to the forward vportions'of members :17 Aat the point "where" the I-upriglits 28 are' formed," 'as indicated at 42 'and "43',-are a pair 'f for- 'wardlyfex'tended members lAa'nd lzl5, 're`- speCtively. Saidv members have' secured lto the-'endsthereof swivel-or casterwvheels 46 and 1217, 'which hold the members lin -upwardly-slanting position. The `rrembers 144 'and 45' have V`secured thereto' depending f'framepiec'es' @from which a crossbar 49 ex- Atends holding members 414 and 45 finrigid fixedfrela'tion. VTo the'crossbar "119, as ind-iycated at'50, larehirrgedly lsecuredfa pair'of arms"v 51v to .whichl is attached atransverse rest 5 2, 4having the: lends thereof; extending beneath 1the members 441 `a'n'ddl land sLlP- ported therefromby'meansof cables 53 and 54,' 'which cables extend from" the endsof bar 52 over pulleys'55 on members 44 and-45 and beneath pulleys? 56 and 57 atVthe lower part of ythe Vframe oft-he machine toa'n upright 58 pivote'dat 59 on theftonguell. The upright r58 has securedthereto a long lever 60 4and a bra-ce 61. The lever v6()eXte:n"ds into'pro'ximity to theplatform 11 and has a ratchet dev-ice f 62 engageabl'e with a* segment lever 63.v 'By'meiansl-of this lever 60and the'cables 53 54;- 'the re'srt52 'may be swungso' as to elevate the same more'o'r less from the ground as desired.` K

yBetween th upper'portions of uprights 28'is 'secured a transverse beam"-64c. `Said beam -is provided lwith aicentral ear'65. Extending through lthe upright's 28 and". the 4ear 65, and journaledlin't-he bearings therein, is Y a transverseshaft 66. Between the uprights 28a`t either sideofthe earffandijournale'd thereonV so astey oscilla-te iny vertical planes are afpair of frames 67 `and 68, said frames resting at a pointshort-of their forward endsl upon the transverse 'resting' bar 52. The frames-are' open at their',lowerL and forwardends, there being secured` to a floor 69 having'adepending--lip 70, `a's-indicated in 'Fi'ggSfor each frame. This hormis, however, cut away a portion of the distancefor` the frames, as indicated at 71 in Fig. 2, the cutaway portion being covered by a series of bars 72. The shaft 66 has thereon a series of sprocket'wheels within the frames 67 and 63,

over Ywhich run a pair of sprocket chains 73 and 74 on frame 67 and a pair of sprocket chains 75 and 76 on frame 68. rFliese sets of sprocket chains are connected by properly 'spaced wooden bars or slats 79, as shown 1n detail in Fig. 3. At the lower end of the frames 67 and 68 the chains 73, 71, 75 and 76 'run'over sprockets 80 on hubs S1 journaled `on said frames, the hubs 81 `also having thereon sprockets 82. The sprockets 82 have the same number of teeth as sprockets S0, but, as clearly shown in Fig. 4, the teeth oi Nsprockets 82 are set `back relativo to the teeth of sprockets 80.

Over the sprockets S2 run a series of sprocket chains S3. The respective pairs of chains 83 for each frame 67 and 68 are connected together by'means of steel bars Si,

'said'bars being toothed or serrated, as indicated vatv 35. The chains 33 run over rollers 86 Journaled m the frames 67 and 68 and in suchposition that said chains run backwardobliquely with respect to the chains 7a. The bars 84 are Hat, as shown in Fig. 3, and

fare secured to the links of chains 83 at an angle with respect to the run of said chains s'uc'h that thev bars are always turned in a forward direction.A A platform 87 obliqucly 'turned with respect to floor or platform 69 is v'ingt-hereon a. bevel gear 97 which drives a bevel gear 98 on a shaft 99 on which are the drivingsprocket wheels'for the chains 21 rand 22.

yfWhenf the machine 'is in operation, that is being driven forward overthe ground, the rotation of bull wheel 12 will rotate the shaft91, and that in turn will drive shafts 66 and'99. Rotation of shaft 66 will drive the'sprocket chains 73, 74, 75 and 76, and with them the conveyer bars 79, which bars are 'caused to travel upwardly over the rods 72 and platforms 69. This will, at the saine time, operate the-sprocket wheels 82 with the sprocket wheels 30, thereby driving the chains S3 and the steel bars 81, which may be called the lifter bars. As may best be seen'from Fig. 3, the lifter bars S1 always move just in advance of the carrier bars 79 lat Vthe point where said carrier bars ap- CIK proach and pass around the turn at the lower end of the frames 67 and 68. lf any obstruction is to be met with it will be engaged by the lifter bars 8d which, being of steel and relatively strong, will withstand the shock of meeting such obstruction and at the saine time will protect the light wooden carrier bars 79. As the elevator bars reach the turn at the end of the frames the toothed edge thereof makes a very quick relatively forward upward and backward sweep. lt is this toothed edge which engages the side of a shock. At such engagement the teeth under the body of the shock, and the movement aforesaid, lifts the edge of the shock bodily and conveys it up upon a carrier bar. Other lifter bars 84 thereafter engage under the shock so that the same is lifted in its entirety and in the identical position which it occupied on the ground from the ground and upon the carrier bars 79. The carrier bars 7 9 are spaced somewhat from the platform 69 and ride .u non the bars 72 which are arched u wardl and any dirt which may have been brought up with the shock will have an opportunity to rattle out between said bars 72.

As clearly indicated in F ig. l, the shocks which may be borne upward upon carrier bars 7 9 are dropped from the saine upon the horizontal portion of platform 23, where the conveyer and elevator bars 26 engage the shocks and the same are carried to the end of conveyer and elevator frames 2l and 22, from which said shocks drop into the rack upon a wagon which may be driven alongside and beneath the elevator frames 21 and 22, rollers being formed on the sides of said frames to prevent damage to the edge ofthe wagon. The iloor 23 to the conveyer and elevator trough is made imperforate so that any grain which may rattle out when the shocks fall into said trough will be moved along with the straw and deposited in the rack upon the wagon..

The combined operation of the steel elevator bars SAI and wood carrier bars 79 in lifting the shocks free from the ground so that they may be conveyed bodily to the coii veyer and elevator and thence to the wagon, is an extremely importa-nt feature of my invention and one which insures certainty of operation without chance of injury to the working parts. `While employing a minimum weight of material, the serrated steel bars essential to effect the lifting operation. Yet they are inefficient and unsatisfactory as carrier bars both because of the great weight of material which would be involved in such use, and because on account of their toothed character they tend to catch in the straw and wind the saine with the conveyer; so that where toothed bars are used alone for both lifter and carrier purposes, they frequently become clogged with straw so as to become useless and require cleaning. The combination of lifter bars Vand carrier bars which l have provided,

however, in which the toothed bars operate as guards for the carrier bars and to effect the grouping and lifting of the shocks upon the same, is not only more efficient for effecting the lifting action but, since the toothed lifter bars drop between the sets of carrier bars as they move rearwardly and also fall below the edge of the flange plate 70, any straw which is engaged in the teeth of these bars will be effectively stripped therefrom. Moreover, by arranging the lifter bars in interspersed relation with the carrier bars, there will always be a carrier' bar against which the lifting portion of the shock may rest w iile the lifter bars engage and lift the same. The carrier bai-s are made of wood and are smooth and the shock as it is raised readily slides upon the same. This organi- Zation of carrier bars and lifter bars moving at the same rate of speed with the lifter bars coming into active position ahead of and between pairs of the carrier bars doubles the numbers of bars at the turn; at the same time, because of the fact that the lifter bars only need to be of sheet metal, making the entire lifter a carrier organization, they are lighter than would be the case if a single run of combined lifter and carrier bars were used.

It will be apparent that the lifter frames 67 and 68 are propelled at the front of the shock loader and arevheld in an extremely flexible manner. The members 44C and 45 are iieXibly supported by the joints Ll2 and 43 on the one side and the caster wheels 4G and 47 on the other. rlhe frame members 67 and G8 in turn are pivotally supported at their upper ends and rest at their lower ends upon the flexibly supported rest bar 52, said frame members being able to rise independently of said bar and of one another in case any obstruction is met with, and the height of said frame members being directly under the control of the operator by means of lever 60. lf, for example, when driving through the field an eXtra large rock, stunip or other obstruction should be met with, the operator can swing the loader mechanism to a point high enough to pass over the same. If, however, such an obstruction were engaged without the operator noticing the same, such engagement would take place on the spring lifter bars which would cause the entire frame to jump up over the obstruction without damage to any part thereof. Furthermore, the loader frames will need to be held at different heights in loading different kinds of grain. l/Vhere the shocks are small and low or partly blown over it will be necessary to have the ends of the lifter bars relativelyy low. If, however, the shocks are high and of the machine may be. effected Very easily,

the hull'wheel lacting as a'pivot about which 'the other parts turn, the wheel 13, of course,

turning in an arc labout the bull wheel,

while the caster wheels 46 and V4:7 follow properly proportioned concentric arcs.

:IJNClLi-lm: v

v1. A shock 'rloader comprisingia wheeled frame/.adated .to'be drivenv from behind,

a Vforwardly :projecting frame piyotally seci'ired 'tosaid `first named frame and supported at lits front end by easter Wheels, an oscillating support VVpivotally .attached to said second named' frame, means under the control of the operatorfer oscillating said support, a carrier frame pivoted to the first AAnamed' frame and Vresting adjacent its front end upon said support,.and means on the carrier'franie for engagingand lifting a shock.

2. A shock loader comprising a wheeled frame adapted to be driven from behind, a Vforwardly projecting frame pivotally secured to said first named frame and supported at its front end by caster wheels, an oscillating support pivotally attached to `said second named frame, a plurality of carrier frames independently pivoted in alinemeiit to the first named frame and resting adjacent their forward ends upon said support, and means on each of said carrier Vframes to engage and lift a shock.

lA shock loader comprising a wheeled frame adapted to be driven from behind, a

Vioiuvarolly projecting frame pivotally secured to said first named frame and supported at its `front end by caster wheels, an

oscillatingsupport pivotally attached to said second named frame, a hand lever, a cable and pulley system for guiding the cable eX- Atending from the hand lever and connected with the support for holding and adjusting thev position of the support, a carrier frame pivoted to the first named frame and resting adjacent .its front end upon said support, and means on the carrier frame for engaging and lifting a shock.

V'In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ELMER PITCHER.

Vitnesses:

F. A. VViii'rnLiiY, H. A. BOWMAN.

Copies;ofthisjp,atentrinaybe obtained forive cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents, v y yWr/ishingcaii,I). C. 

